


Liars' Gold

by calosanza



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra
Genre: Bloodbending (Avatar), Canon Compliant, Canon-Typical Violence, Enemies to Friends, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, F/M, Falling In Love, Hurt/Comfort, MC Is A Badass, Slow Burn, Strong Female Characters, i love moody firebender boys can you tell, starts in book 3, will they won't they
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-17
Updated: 2019-10-07
Packaged: 2020-05-13 20:03:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 15,591
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19258222
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/calosanza/pseuds/calosanza
Summary: Mako was turning his life around; he was dedicated to his job, to helping rebuild the Air Nation, to doing what he needed to do in order to make Republic City a place where humans and spirits could thrive. He was doing well, that is, until a girl with light grey eyes and glares that could kill traipsed back into his life.He was going to need more coffee.





	1. Chapter 1

Yari bowed at the waist, hands clasped with her fellow performers as the audience applauded. She and the others basked in the approval for another moment before exiting the ring in a line, waving and beaming at crowd members. As soon as they were out of sight, Yari let the smile drop from her face as the boy beside her, Kesuk, punched the air.

"Another successful night in the books! You did so well, Yari!" he said, shaking her shoulder enthusiastically. "You'd think that with Harmonic Convergence the turnout would have been less, but it looked like a full house tonight!"

Rolling her eyes with a grin (Yari was never able to understand how Kesuk always had so much energy), she brushed his hand off. "Thanks. But it's been a couple weeks, maybe people have adjusted by now. Or we're just lucky our part of the city wasn't hit with vines and spirits and everyone else is looking for a reprieve. All I know is that President Raiko has his work cut out for him ever since he exiled the Avatar."

She listened idly as her friend rambled on about the things he was going to do tomorrow for his day off, and eventually they went separate ways to their tents.

Yari let out a long sigh as she stepped into the confines of her quarters. It wasn't big - enough room for a small bed, a wardrobe, a trunk, and a small vanity - but it was what she had been calling home since she joined the Republic City Circus four years ago at the age of fifteen. She walked over to her wardrobe and opened the doors. An old poster of the Fire Ferrets pro-bending team was tacked to the inside - her old friends Mako and Bolin had given it to her a month after their debut. She distantly wondered what they were up to now.

She reached past the poster for an empty hanger and shut the door with her foot.

Going over to her bed, she tossed the hanger down and opened the trunk that was at the foot of her bed and grabbed her regular clothes. After changing and hanging her costume back up, Yari sat herself down in front of her vanity and undid the braids in her hair. Once she combed it out, leaving her shoulder-length hair poofy and in need of a wash, she cleaned the makeup off her face.

In the mirror, Yari noticed a woman peering into her tent. She had long black hair and wore a tattered grey dress. Her most noticeable feature were the arms that were missing from her sides.

"Excuse me..." the woman said timidly. "My name is Ming-Hua, I'm a big fan of yours."

Rising from her seat, Yari smiled and approached the woman. "It's nice to meet you. Did you enjoy the show tonight?" she said.

Ming-Hua glanced over her shoulder with a fearful expression.

"Um, yes. Is it okay if I come in? I'd like to talk about some techniques with you."

"Er... how about we just talk out here. If you're wanting to talk technique, I can take you to Kesuk, he knows a lot more about that than I do..."

"No!" Ming-Hua said quickly, but immediately composed herself. "I - I mean, no, I'd rather talk to you, if you don't mind," she took a minute step forward. "There's a man following me," she whispered, eyes wide. "He's been following me since the show ended and I'm beginning to get scared."

Sticking her head out the doorway as casually as possible, Yari noticed a burly man dressed in green leaning against a pillar, staring directly at the two of them.

"Okay, well, I can go and grab my boss and he can get some guys to escort you somewhere safe," Yari said.

"I'd feel safer if I was with other women. I just need to leave with someone so he won't follow."

Sighing, Yari relented. "I can escort you," she said. "We can leave out the back of my tent."

Taking Ming-Hua inside and grabbing a hip flask full of water from under her bed, Yari lifted the back flap of her tent and ushered the other woman through.

They made their way back onto the main street and ducked into an alley to stay out of the light. Yari routinely checked over her shoulder to make sure the man wasn't following them as they turned down alley after alley, attempting to get as far away as possible. Ming-Hua said they were about halfway back to her apartment when a rumbling threw them both off-balance.

Gasping and whirling around, Ming-Hua called out, "Behind you!"

Feeling a presence directly behind her, Yari threw her arms out beside her, fingers crooked in a way a puppet master would control their marionettes. She could hear grunting as she turned around; the man was a few feet behind her, arm outstretched, twitching as he tried to break the invisible bonds that tied him. Yari lowered her arms and his body followed suit, falling first to his knees, and then onto his stomach, where she pressed his cheek into the concrete.

There was a quiet wooshing noise as a figure landed on the ground at the other end of the alley.

"So it is true," they said. It was a man's voice. He stepped towards them, his face partially covered by shadows. "Unalaq wasn't lying about your bloodline."

"Who are you people?" Yari asked breathlessly, releasing the man in green from his binds. "I was just trying to walk her home because this guy was freaking her out!"

"My name is Zaheer and the man you pinned to the ground is Ghazan. We are members of an organization called the Red Lotus, and we have a proposition for you."

Looking over at Ming-Hua as she sidled past to go over to Ghazan, Yari took a step backwards and opened the flask she'd strapped to her hips, a stream of water followed her hands as she held them out in front of her.

"So this was all a ploy to get me in an alley? And what's the Red Lotus, is it like the White Lotus?"

"Nothing close," Zaheer said harshly. "While the White Lotus seems to only be preoccupied with babysitting the Avatar, the Red Lotus aims to have humans and spirits live together peacefully by dismantling nation borders and their leaders. Our proposition for you is that we need your help in the Earth Kingdom. Queen Hou-Ting is a corrupt leader that only cares about herself. We need your help to take her down."

"And what do you mean by take her down? Why did you corner me, of all people? Is it because of what I can do?" Yari lowered her arms slightly but did not return the water to its flask. "And say I choose to come along, what's in it for me?"

"What do you want?"

"I don't know. My circus has performed for her majesty before; she is not a pleasant woman... but I don't think she deserves to die."

"We never said we were going to kill her. We'll need your help getting inside at the very least. But there's something else we'll need your help with first."

"And what's that?"

"It's risky to talk about it here. Would you care to come for a walk?"

***

Yari sat in an abandoned apartment complex with Ming-Hua, Ghazan, Zaheer, and another woman named P'li.

"Avatar Korra has left Republic City, no doubt to search for other airbenders that have began to pop up," Zaheer said. "There has been a call for all airbenders in the area to go to Air Temple Island to begin their training... which is where I'll be going. I need you four to wait here while I gather intel."

"Wait, wait, us four?" Yari cut in. "I can't just wait around here while you get some fancy new skills. I have a job! And you still haven't told me what you need me for, either."

"You can go back to the circus if you want, but don't you want to change the world?" Zaheer said evenly. "The vision we strive for is a righteous one. The natural order of the world is disorder; nature was doing fine until humans put their policies in place. It's those policies that force people with your abilities underground, never given the freedom to explore their craft. We want to change that, and we need your help to do it."

Yari couldn't deny that he had a point. She didn't want to be in the circus for the rest of her life, and she was tired of having to hide a power in her that few people possessed.

"Okay," she said. "I'll wait here with the others."

"Excellent," Zaheer said. "I'll be back in a few hours with some information. Make yourself at home."

Yari looked around at the vines overrunning the apartment. Yari bowed at the waist, hands clasped with her fellow performers as the audience applauded. She and the others basked in the approval for another moment before exiting the ring in a line, waving and beaming at crowd members. As soon as they were out of sight, Yari let the smile drop from her face as the boy beside her, Kesuk, punched the air.

"Another successful night in the books! You did so well, Yari!" he said, shaking her shoulder enthusiastically. "You'd think that with Harmonic Convergence the turnout would have been less, but it looked like a full house tonight!"

Rolling her eyes with a grin (Yari was never able to understand how Kesuk always had so much energy), she brushed his hand off. "Thanks. But it's been a couple weeks, maybe people have adjusted by now. Or we're just lucky our part of the city wasn't hit with vines and spirits and everyone else is looking for a reprieve. All I know is that President Raiko has his work cut out for him ever since he exiled the Avatar."

She listened idly as her friend rambled on about the things he was going to do tomorrow for his day off, and eventually they went separate ways to their tents.

Yari let out a long sigh as she stepped into the confines of her quarters. It wasn't big - enough room for a small bed, a wardrobe, a trunk, and a small vanity - but it was what she had been calling home since she joined the Republic City Circus four years ago at the age of fifteen. She walked over to her wardrobe and opened the doors. An old poster of the Fire Ferrets pro-bending team was tacked to the inside - her old friends Mako and Bolin had given it to her a month after their debut. She distantly wondered what they were up to now.

She reached past the poster for an empty hanger and shut the door with her foot.

Going over to her bed, she tossed the hanger down and opened the trunk that was at the foot of her bed and grabbed her regular clothes. After changing and hanging her costume back up, Yari sat herself down in front of her vanity and undid the braids in her hair. Once she combed it out, leaving her shoulder-length hair poofy and in need of a wash, she cleaned the makeup off her face.

In the mirror, Yari noticed a woman peering into her tent. She had long black hair and wore a tattered grey dress. Her most noticeable feature were the arms that were missing from her sides.

"Excuse me..." the woman said timidly. "My name is Ming-Hua, I'm a big fan of yours."

Rising from her seat, Yari smiled and approached the woman. "It's nice to meet you. Did you enjoy the show tonight?" she said.

Ming-Hua glanced over her shoulder with a fearful expression.

"Um, yes. Is it okay if I come in? I'd like to talk about some techniques with you."

"Er... how about we just talk out here. If you're wanting to talk technique, I can take you to Kesuk, he knows a lot more about that than I do..."

"No!" Ming-Hua said quickly, but immediately composed herself. "I - I mean, no, I'd rather talk to you, if you don't mind," she took a minute step forward. "There's a man following me," she whispered, eyes wide. "He's been following me since the show ended and I'm beginning to get scared."

Sticking her head out the doorway as casually as possible, Yari noticed a burly man dressed in green leaning against a pillar, staring directly at the two of them.

"Okay, well, I can go and grab my boss and he can get some guys to escort you somewhere safe," Yari said.

"I'd feel safer if I was with other women. I just need to leave with someone so he won't follow."

Sighing, Yari relented. "I can escort you," she said. "We can leave out the back of my tent."

Taking Ming-Hua inside and grabbing a hip flask full of water from under her bed, Yari lifted the back flap of her tent and ushered the other woman through.

They made their way back onto the main street and ducked into an alley to stay out of the light. Yari routinely checked over her shoulder to make sure the man wasn't following them as they turned down alley after alley, attempting to get as far away as possible. Ming-Hua said they were about halfway back to her apartment when a rumbling threw them both off-balance.

Gasping and whirling around, Ming-Hua called out, "Behind you!"

Feeling a presence directly behind her, Yari threw her arms out beside her, fingers crooked in a way a puppet master would control their marionettes. She could hear grunting as she turned around; the man was a few feet behind her, arm outstretched, twitching as he tried to break the invisible bonds that tied him. Yari lowered her arms and his body followed suit, falling first to his knees, and then onto his stomach, where she pressed his cheek into the concrete.

There was a quiet wooshing noise as a figure landed on the ground at the other end of the alley.

"So it is true," they said. It was a man's voice. He stepped towards them, his face partially covered by shadows. "Unalaq wasn't lying about your bloodline."

"Who are you people?" Yari asked breathlessly, releasing the man in green from his binds. "I was just trying to walk her home because this guy was freaking her out!"

"My name is Zaheer and the man you pinned to the ground is Ghazan. We are members of an organization called the Red Lotus, and we have a proposition for you."

Looking over at Ming-Hua as she sidled past to go over to Ghazan, Yari took a step backwards and opened the flask she'd strapped to her hips, a stream of water followed her hands as she held them out in front of her.

"So this was all a ploy to get me in an alley? And what's the Red Lotus, is it like the White Lotus?"

"Nothing close," Zaheer said harshly. "While the White Lotus seems to only be preoccupied with babysitting the Avatar, the Red Lotus aims to have humans and spirits live together peacefully by dismantling nation borders and their leaders. Our proposition for you is that we need your help in the Earth Kingdom. Queen Hou-Ting is a corrupt leader that only cares about herself. We need your help to take her down."

"And what do you mean by take her down? Why did you corner me, of all people? Is it because of what I can do?" Yari lowered her arms slightly but did not return the water to its flask. "And say I choose to come along, what's in it for me?"

"What do you want?"

"I don't know. My circus has performed for her majesty before; she is not a pleasant woman... but I don't think she deserves to die."

"We never said we were going to kill her. We'll need your help getting inside at the very least. But there's something else we'll need your help with first."

"And what's that?"

"It's risky to talk about it here. Would you care to come for a walk?"

***

Yari sat in an abandoned apartment complex with Ming-Hua, Ghazan, Zaheer, and another woman named P'li.

"Avatar Korra has left Republic City, no doubt to search for other airbenders that have began to pop up," Zaheer said. "There has been a call for all airbenders in the area to go to Air Temple Island to begin their training... which is where I'll be going. I need you four to wait here while I gather intel."

"Wait, wait, us four?" Yari cut in. "I can't just wait around here while you get some fancy new skills. I have a job! And you still haven't told me what you need me for, either."

"You can go back to the circus if you want, but don't you want to change the world?" Zaheer said evenly. "The vision we strive for is a righteous one. The natural order of the world is disorder; nature was doing fine until humans put their policies in place. It's those policies that force people with your abilities underground, never given the freedom to explore their craft. We want to change that, and we need your help to do it."

Yari couldn't deny that he had a point. She didn't want to be in the circus for the rest of her life, and she was tired of having to hide a power in her that few people possessed.

"Okay," she said. "I'll wait here with the others."

"Excellent," Zaheer said. "I'll be back in a few hours with some information. Make yourself at home."

Yari looked around at the vines overrunning the apartment. Sure, she thought. I'll do that. Yari bowed at the waist, hands clasped with her fellow performers as the audience applauded. She and the others basked in the approval for another moment before exiting the ring in a line, waving and beaming at crowd members. As soon as they were out of sight, Yari let the smile drop from her face as the boy beside her, Kesuk, punched the air.

"Another successful night in the books! You did so well, Yari!" he said, shaking her shoulder enthusiastically. "You'd think that with Harmonic Convergence the turnout would have been less, but it looked like a full house tonight!"

Rolling her eyes with a grin (Yari was never able to understand how Kesuk always had so much energy), she brushed his hand off. "Thanks. But it's been a couple weeks, maybe people have adjusted by now. Or we're just lucky our part of the city wasn't hit with vines and spirits and everyone else is looking for a reprieve. All I know is that President Raiko has his work cut out for him ever since he exiled the Avatar."

She listened idly as her friend rambled on about the things he was going to do tomorrow for his day off, and eventually they went separate ways to their tents.

Yari let out a long sigh as she stepped into the confines of her quarters. It wasn't big - enough room for a small bed, a wardrobe, a trunk, and a small vanity - but it was what she had been calling home since she joined the Republic City Circus four years ago at the age of fifteen. She walked over to her wardrobe and opened the doors. An old poster of the Fire Ferrets pro-bending team was tacked to the inside - her old friends Mako and Bolin had given it to her a month after their debut. She distantly wondered what they were up to now.

She reached past the poster for an empty hanger and shut the door with her foot.

Going over to her bed, she tossed the hanger down and opened the trunk that was at the foot of her bed and grabbed her regular clothes. After changing and hanging her costume back up, Yari sat herself down in front of her vanity and undid the braids in her hair. Once she combed it out, leaving her shoulder-length hair poofy and in need of a wash, she cleaned the makeup off her face.

In the mirror, Yari noticed a woman peering into her tent. She had long black hair and wore a tattered grey dress. Her most noticeable feature were the arms that were missing from her sides.

"Excuse me..." the woman said timidly. "My name is Ming-Hua, I'm a big fan of yours."

Rising from her seat, Yari smiled and approached the woman. "It's nice to meet you. Did you enjoy the show tonight?" she said.

Ming-Hua glanced over her shoulder with a fearful expression.

"Um, yes. Is it okay if I come in? I'd like to talk about some techniques with you."

"Er... how about we just talk out here. If you're wanting to talk technique, I can take you to Kesuk, he knows a lot more about that than I do..."

"No!" Ming-Hua said quickly, but immediately composed herself. "I - I mean, no, I'd rather talk to you, if you don't mind," she took a minute step forward. "There's a man following me," she whispered, eyes wide. "He's been following me since the show ended and I'm beginning to get scared."

Sticking her head out the doorway as casually as possible, Yari noticed a burly man dressed in green leaning against a pillar, staring directly at the two of them.

"Okay, well, I can go and grab my boss and he can get some guys to escort you somewhere safe," Yari said.

"I'd feel safer if I was with other women. I just need to leave with someone so he won't follow."

Sighing, Yari relented. "I can escort you," she said. "We can leave out the back of my tent."

Taking Ming-Hua inside and grabbing a hip flask full of water from under her bed, Yari lifted the back flap of her tent and ushered the other woman through.

They made their way back onto the main street and ducked into an alley to stay out of the light. Yari routinely checked over her shoulder to make sure the man wasn't following them as they turned down alley after alley, attempting to get as far away as possible. Ming-Hua said they were about halfway back to her apartment when a rumbling threw them both off-balance.

Gasping and whirling around, Ming-Hua called out, "Behind you!"

Feeling a presence directly behind her, Yari threw her arms out beside her, fingers crooked in a way a puppet master would control their marionettes. She could hear grunting as she turned around; the man was a few feet behind her, arm outstretched, twitching as he tried to break the invisible bonds that tied him. Yari lowered her arms and his body followed suit, falling first to his knees, and then onto his stomach, where she pressed his cheek into the concrete.

There was a quiet wooshing noise as a figure landed on the ground at the other end of the alley.

"So it is true," they said. It was a man's voice. He stepped towards them, his face partially covered by shadows. "Unalaq wasn't lying about your bloodline."

"Who are you people?" Yari asked breathlessly, releasing the man in green from his binds. "I was just trying to walk her home because this guy was freaking her out!"

"My name is Zaheer and the man you pinned to the ground is Ghazan. We are members of an organization called the Red Lotus, and we have a proposition for you."

Looking over at Ming-Hua as she sidled past to go over to Ghazan, Yari took a step backwards and opened the flask she'd strapped to her hips, a stream of water followed her hands as she held them out in front of her.

"So this was all a ploy to get me in an alley? And what's the Red Lotus, is it like the White Lotus?"

"Nothing close," Zaheer said harshly. "While the White Lotus seems to only be preoccupied with babysitting the Avatar, the Red Lotus aims to have humans and spirits live together peacefully by dismantling nation borders and their leaders. Our proposition for you is that we need your help in the Earth Kingdom. Queen Hou-Ting is a corrupt leader that only cares about herself. We need your help to take her down."

"And what do you mean by take her down? Why did you corner me, of all people? Is it because of what I can do?" Yari lowered her arms slightly but did not return the water to its flask. "And say I choose to come along, what's in it for me?"

"What do you want?"

"I don't know. My circus has performed for her majesty before; she is not a pleasant woman... but I don't think she deserves to die."

"We never said we were going to kill her. We'll need your help getting inside at the very least. But there's something else we'll need your help with first."

"And what's that?"

"It's risky to talk about it here. Would you care to come for a walk?"

***

Yari sat in an abandoned apartment complex with Ming-Hua, Ghazan, Zaheer, and another woman named P'li.

"Avatar Korra has left Republic City, no doubt to search for other airbenders that have began to pop up," Zaheer said. "There has been a call for all airbenders in the area to go to Air Temple Island to begin their training... which is where I'll be going. I need you four to wait here while I gather intel."

"Wait, wait, us four?" Yari cut in. "I can't just wait around here while you get some fancy new skills. I have a job! And you still haven't told me what you need me for, either."

"You can go back to the circus if you want, but don't you want to change the world?" Zaheer said evenly. "The vision we strive for is a righteous one. The natural order of the world is disorder; nature was doing fine until humans put their policies in place. It's those policies that force people with your abilities underground, never given the freedom to explore their craft. We want to change that, and we need your help to do it."

Yari couldn't deny that he had a point. She didn't want to be in the circus for the rest of her life, and she was tired of having to hide a power in her that few people possessed.

"Okay," she said. "I'll wait here with the others."

"Excellent," Zaheer said. "I'll be back in a few hours with some information. Make yourself at home."

Yari looked around at the vines overrunning the apartment. _Sure,_ she thought. _I'll do that._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hello friends! we are back at it again with the moody firebenders.  
> it might be the little anarchist in me but i love Zaheer and his squad, and i can't say i disagree with his philosophy (as much as i love Korra) and i'm pumped to explore the Red Lotus as characters and real people. i'm very excited to see where this story takes us and i hope you enjoy it in the meantime!! <3


	2. Chapter 2

Yari was the youngest person in the apartment by at least twenty-five years, but it didn't stop Ghazan from trying to relate to her.

"So... acrobat, huh?" he was saying. Zaheer had been gone for two hours and the rest of them had spent one hour and fifty-eight minutes of it in silence. "How long have you been doing that?"

Yari, who was making tiny braids in her hair, shrugged. "Five years, since I was fourteen."

"Your parents are okay with that?"

"They didn't know. I got sick of living in the South Pole and just up and left. Haven't seen them since."

"Don't you miss them?"

"At first I did, I guess. I met some people that became like my family, so I was happy with just them."

"Where are they now?"

"One of them became a cop and the other is a moverstar. I think they roll with the Avatar, too. I haven't seen them in a couple of years."

Ghazan leaned against the wall opposite of her, crossing his arms over his chest. "We haven't seen our families in over ten years; I don't think they'd want anything to do with us, anyway."

"So we became each other's family," P'li added. "In my opinion, it's an upgrade."

"I don't know what my parents would do if they found out I was hanging out with a bunch of criminals... not that I haven't done it before," Yari said, undoing the braids. "The circus isn't exactly the best place to make friends with upstanding citizens."

"And the cop and moverstar buddies of yours... do they know about what you can do?"

"They were the first to know."

"And you still trust them to keep it a secret?"

"If they wanted to rat me out they would have done it a long time ago. It's been three years, I don't see why they would change their minds now."

P'li pursed her lips and said nothing further.

They sat in silence for the rest of the evening.

***

Sometime after midnight, Yari, who had been idly twirling a stream of water through her fingers, heard sirens in the distance. She returned the water to her flask and sat up.

"Look alive, everyone," P'li said from her perch in the window. "We may have company."

"Are those sirens for us?" Yari asked.

"Zaheer, more specifically. Someone must have recognized him."

They waited with bated breath as the sirens drew closer, and then passed them completely. Less than a minute later, there was a gust of wind and Zaheer appeared in the window.

"Sorry everyone, one of Avatar Aang's kids recognized me. The waterbender."

Looking outside, P'li shook her head. "You've made quite a stir on the island," she said. "There are swarms of cops everywhere."

"Are you still wanting to take out the president?" Ghazan asked casually.

Yari tried to hide her surprise, but it came out in a small squeak from her throat. The four outlaws paid her no mind.

"No, it's too risky. We have to get out of the city as soon as possible," Zaheer said and turned to Yari. "This is your last chance to back out. You can leave if you want, go back to your life as a circus performer and pretend this never happened. Or you can come with us and actually make a difference."

"I'm coming," Yari said without hesitation.

"That's good to hear. We'll wait a few hours for things to die down and then we'll make a break for it."

By mid-afternoon, the five of them had staked out a delivery truck and were hiding out in the back of it. Ming-Hua, using water from a water bottle belonging to the driver, held an ice spike at his abdomen as they approached a check stop on the bridge that would take them out of the city.

Yari watched the sweat bead on the driver's brow as a policeman approached his window.

"Good afternoon," the cop said. "Where are you off to today?"

"I just have, uh, a delivery to make in - in Bao Yu," the driver said, reaching over to the passenger seat and handing the policeman some papers. "I should be back later today."

"You alright?"

"Y-yeah. Just a little tired. One more pickup then I'm off the clock."

"I thought you said you had a delivery," the officer said suspiciously.

"Oh, d-did I?"

"Sir, I'm going to need you to step out of the vehicle and open the back of the truck."

The driver slid out of his seat and hesitated for a moment before taking off.

"We move on three," Zaheer whispered. "One... two... three!"

Using his feet, he blew the back doors open with his airbending and Ming-Hua jumped into the driver's seat.

"Gun it!" P'li cried.

Revving the engine, Ming-Hua floored it and they shot forward, breaking through the barricades.

Five cop cars were hot on their tail. Holding onto Zaheer's shoulder for stability, P'li sent a blast of fire with her mind, taking out two of the cars, and then Ghazan stepped in, turning part of the bridge into lava. The three remaining cars skidded to a stop in time to avoid falling into the pit.

Unable to hide her excitement, Yari grabbed Ghazan's arm and shook it vigorously.

"That was insane!" she shouted. "I have never seen anyone lavabend or combustion bend before. You guys are so cool!"

"Easy kid, you're going to fall out of the truck if you keep bouncing around like that," Ghazan said, steadying her.

P'li pulled the truck doors shut as Ming-Hua took a turn onto a dirt road.

"How far are we going to go?" she asked.

"Until we're out of gas. We need to get as far away as we can," Zaheer said. "I'm going to meditate to try and figure out where the Avatar is."

They were back to sitting in silence.

Yari lounged in the passenger seat, flicking through a pro-bending magazine she found in the glove compartment. It was quite old, she recognized, as there were articles about the Fire Ferrets scattered throughout. On one page there was a photo of the team; Mako, Bolin, and Hasook. They were in their uniforms, helmets tucked under their arms. The caption read 'fan favourite Fire Ferrets take second place in the charity cup'.

Yari ignored the pit in her stomach as she flipped the page.

***

_Three years ago_

Yari couldn't figure out how she had gotten so impossibly lost.

She'd walked the stretch from Mako and Bolin's place back to the circus grounds dozens of times. It was only a forty-minute walk. At some point she made a left when she should have made a right, and now she was walking past shops she had never seen before.

People watched her as she passed - a tiny seventeen year old girl by herself in one of the most dangerous parts of the city could only brew trouble. She was small, sure, but she could also move barrels full of water without breaking a sweat; acrobats needed muscle as much as the strongmen did.

Another left and Yari nearly collided with someone. They grabbed her by the wrists to steady her as she stumbled backwards.

"Hey, watch where you're going, kid," the person said, not releasing her wrists. "Don't'cha know it's dangerous for girls like you to be walkin' out alone in places like this?"

Yari tried to pull her hands free, but to no avail. The stranger, a man dressed in red and black, sneered down at her. She could see a gold cap on one of his front teeth.

"Let me go," she demanded.

"Now, now, I think you should let me walk you to where you need to go, to protect you and all."

"I don't need protection. Now let. Me. Go."

"And if I don't?"

Seething with anger, Yari yanked her wrists free. "Touch me again and I'll shatter your kneecaps."

The man's hand shot out for her collar but she ducked out of the way, hand outstretched to shield herself. Straightening up, Yari was startled to see the man seemingly frozen in place, his arm still reaching out for her, twitching occasionally. His eyes were wide in fear.

"What - what are you doing to me?" he choked out. "Blood... bloodbender!"

The word made Yari's blood run cold. She lowered her hand and he was set free. The man didn't spare her a second glance as he turned and ran off in the opposite direction.

Yari couldn't move. She had to get out of there, but she couldn't figure out how to get home. The only place she could maybe remember to get back to was the gym Mako and Bolin lived in. It took her a moment, but she was able to get her feet moving and she sprinted as fast as she could back to the pro-bending arena.

Mako and Bolin were hunched over a small table with playing cards scattered across it when Yari burst in with tears in her eyes.

Mako reacted first, throwing his cards down and getting to his feet. He met Yari halfway, helping her to sit on their couch.

"What happened?" he asked. "Did someone hurt you?"

Yari had her hands in her lap, staring down at her palms with a look akin to absolute terror.

"I... I did something. Something I didn't know I could do."

"Did you hurt someone?" Bolin asked.

"No, no. At least... I don't think so. I got lost trying to get home and I ran into this guy. He grabbed me and I got free, but he tried to grab me again and I stopped him... but I didn't touch him. I just... controlled him. Like a puppet."

"Wait, wait... you bloodbent him?" Bolin gasped.

Mako quickly shushed him. "Don't say it so loud, Bo."

"I bloodbent him," Yari echoed. "I'm - I'm a bloodbender."

***

_Present day_

"Up and at 'em kid, we're making camp."

Yari opened her eyes, squinting up at Ghazan, who had opened the passenger door of the truck.

"Where are we?" she asked groggily. When did she fall asleep?

"Middle of nowhere. The truck's out of gas so we're hoofing it now."

After taking a minute to get her bearings and shake the cobwebs, Yari helped with gathering firewood.

The five of them sat around the fire as the sun set. Zaheer sat away from them, still meditating.

"While you were out, Zaheer said he wanted us to help you train," P'li said as she stoked the flames. "He wants you to hone your bloodbending a bit more before we face the Earth Queen."

"What can you do with your bloodbending?" Ghazan asked.

"I can control one person for about five minutes? Any longer than that and I'll pass out," Yari said.

"What about killing?"

"I've never tried it."

"Controlling more than one person?"

"Never tried it."

Sighing exasperatedly, Ghazan cracked his knuckles. "Looks like we've got some work to do."


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> (a/n: hello friends! we are getting closer to reuniting with Mako and co and i don't know about you, but i'm HYPED. i hope you guys are enjoying this story so far; please leave me some (constructive) feedback and i will see you all in the next one! <3

Yari never needed a reason to use her bloodbending, not since her run-in with that man, but she still practiced in secret. A rat, a bird, going up in animal size until she could control a human. She only practiced a few times on a human and they normally deserved it.

During Amon's presence in Republic City, she would loiter around Equalist rallies and every time someone got belligerent – bender or not – Yari would take control of their legs and make them trip, or their arm and make them hit themselves. She'd always done it with good intentions, not to kill. Never to kill.

Now Ghazan was holding up an animal he trapped. It struggled against his grip, eyes wide in fear, as if it knew what was going to happen. Yari had her arms outstretched; she could feel the animal's rapid pulse alongside her own. A beat passed. And then two.

"I can't do it," she said defeatedly. "I can't just hurt an innocent animal to test my strength. It's cruel."

Ghazan thought for a moment before a second before releasing the animal and watching skitter off into the trees. "What about a fish? We need a few to eat tonight."

"I... I guess that would be fine."

"Alright, then let's find a river."

Twenty minutes later the four of them stood on a riverbank, squinting into the river's depths.

"I don't know about you guys, but I can't see anything," P'li said bluntly.

"Do fish even swim about so late? Do they sleep? Can they sleep?" Yari asked each question in rapid succession, her anxiety prominent as she steadied her shaking hands.

"It's only dusk. They should still be around. Ming-Hua bend some water to get a fish," Ghazan said.

Ming-Hua did as he said, fashioning herself some appendages out of water before lifting a volume of it over top of the river. A single fish darted around in the bubble.

"There's one," Ghazan said. "Give it a shot, kid."

Taking a deep breath, Yari outstretched her arms and focused all her thought onto the fish. Its pulse thudded alongside her own. Slowly making her hands into fists, she willed the pulse to slow.

Its movements became less erratic as its heart slowed. Eventually, it stopped completely. Yari lowered her arms and Ming-Hua separated the fish from the rest of the bubble. It twitched a few times but did not try to get away.

"Nice work!" Ghazan clapped Yari on the back. "How do you feel?"

"Fine, I think. Can I do another?"

"Well, we need four more."

By the time they killed the final fish, Yari's head was spinning. Her knees were weak and she felt like she was going to be sick.

Sitting by the fire sipping on some water, Yari watched as the fish cooked. She stopped their hearts without touching them. If she could do it to fish, who knows the damage she could do to humans. She was nervous about it.

Her uncertainty must have shown on her face, because Ghazan leaned over and patted her shoulder.

"You're doing a good thing here," he said reassuringly. "It'll all be worth it in the long run."

"I hope so. This is stuff I've never trifled with before, I'm not sure how I feel about it yet."

"You'll have lots of time to sort your feelings out, so don't worry about it."

"Besides, we still have to figure out where the Avatar is hiding," Ming-Hua added. "She could be anywhere."

"We'll find her," P'li said, glancing over to Zaheer who was still meditating. "It's only a matter of time."

Stirring, Zaheer sat up a bit straighter. "She's with the Metal Clan," he said calmly.

"Are we going to go after her?"

"Eventually. There's a man of the Red Lotus on the inside of Zaofu, Aiwei. He's one of the leader's most trusted advisors; he can get us inside."

"Do you still want me to train?" Yari piped up.

"For the time being, yes. Once we get moving, we may have to put a hold on things. We'll depart in a few days. But first, we need to get to a post office to send a letter to Aiwei. It can't be any of us because we'll be recognized, so, Yari... this is your first task as a member of the Red Lotus; a chance to prove yourself, if you're up to it."

"Leave it to me. Where is the closest post office?"

"It's a few miles away from here, in a town called Yangshou. Ghazan will go with you to make sure you get there safely. You two can leave in the morning. I'll write the letter."

As Zaheer mentioned his name, Ghazan handed Yari one of the cooked fish on a stick. "Looks like you're stuck with me a little longer, kid," he said playfully.

***

The next morning, Zaheer sent Yari and Ghazan two hours west with a letter written on scrap papers they scavenged from the delivery truck.

They stayed off the roads, trekking through thickets and trees.

"Do you miss them?" Ghazan asked, about thirty minutes into their adventure. "Your cop and actor friends?"

"Bolin and Mako? Sometimes, I mean, back in Republic City when they were in their pro-bending heyday, I'd see their faces everywhere; if I wasn't with them, I was hearing about them. Every time they had a game, I'd hear it on the radio from the next tent over," Yari stepped over a log as something settled in her chest. Was it longing? "Mako wanted me to be their waterbender, actually. I had just started at the circus, but I hadn't gotten my own act yet – I was my friend Kesuk's assistant for a magic show he did with his waterbending, it was so amazing. Anyway, Mako tried to convince me to leave the circus to pro-bend, but I refused. I told him I saw no future in it, and he'd be better off with someone else. He got really angry at that and assumed I was saying that he had no future. We got into a big fight and he threatened to sell me out to Chief Beifong for bloodbending. That was two years ago, and we haven't spoken since. I still saw Bolin from time to time – he gave me a poster of their team after they debuted."

"Who was their waterbender?"

"Funnily enough they found a kid named Hasook, who was Kesuk's younger brother. It didn't end up working out and the Avatar joined the team. Right after that, Amon kind of got in the way and they all ended up saving the city."

Ghazan took a moment to take a drink from their canteen.

"What do you know about Amon?" he said carefully, watching for her reaction.

Her expression didn't change; she only shrugged. "About as much as the rest of the public. He was some guy pretending to be a non-bender and took people's bending away using bloodbending. He also faked being attacked by a firebender to further his cause that benders were dangerous. He wasn't a great guy," she said. "I remember my mom was always trying to get me to come back home during it all. She was worried that I'd get my bending taken away, or something, she never specified."

"That's all you know?'

"Yeah, why do you ask?"

"No reason. I was locked away in the middle of an ocean for ten years – I just wanna know what I missed."

Yari gave him a funny look. "Right..." she said, but did not press any further.

The town of Yangshou was eight buildings and a stable. Ghazan waited on the outskirts, having given Yari a very in-depth plan:

"Get into the post-office, seal and post the letter, drop it in the outbox and get out. Don't talk to anyone if you don't have to. If someone recognizes you, kill them. I'm kidding," he added quickly at her horrified expression. "Just subdue them and get out as fast as you can. I'll be right here when you get back."

Yari's heart hammered in her chest as she entered the town. A few citizens stared at her as she passed, but no one looked panicked. The post office was small; merely a wooden counter with a single clerk behind it. Post cards for Yangshou lined the wall behind them.

"How can I help you?" the clerk said in a monotone voice.

"I just need to get this letter sent to Zaofu," Yari said, hoping her voice didn't give away the amount of anxiety she was having.

"Sure. It costs one yuan for the stamp and one yuan for the packaging."

"O-of course," Yari dug through her pockets and scrounged up the money and set it on the counter, followed by the letter.

The clerk took the items and sealed the letter before sticking a stamp on it.

"Your letter should be delivered in two days. Is the return address your place of living?"

"Yes," Yari said without thinking.

"If there is a problem while it is in-transit we will contact you through that address. Is there anything else I can help you with?"

"No, that will be everything."

"Very well. Have a nice day, miss."

Smiling, Yari turned on her heel and hastily left the building. She made it halfway down the street before someone stopped her.

"Excuse me, miss, but are you with the Republic City Circus by chance? My son is a big fan and he says he recognizes you as one of the acrobats..." the woman that stopped her had a kind face and bright green eyes. A young boy was at her side, peering shyly up at Yari.

"Sorry, no," Yari said, not missing the way the boy's face fell and she found herself adding, "you must be thinking of my cousin; everyone says we could be sisters. She's the waterbender for the circus."

"I see. Well, next time you see her, could you tell her that Jian says hi and that he wants to be like her one day?"

Yari's heart swelled and she couldn't hide the grin that crossed her features. "Yes, I will tell her. I'm glad you enjoy the shows," she said to the boy.

Jian and his mother bid Yari goodbye and she high-tailed it out of the town, not daring to make eye-contact with anything else until she was halfway back to Ghazan. He was right where she left him, lounging against a large tree and tossing a stone between his hands.

"Did everything go okay?" he asked her as she plopped down beside him.

"Everything went fine. I got recognized by a mother and her son; they asked me if I was with the circus in Republic City."

"What did you tell them?"

"They mistook me for my cousin. The boy said that he wanted to be just like me one day... no one's ever said that to me before."

"Well you're about to become a whole lot more revolutionary. Let's go, I want to get back before dark."

***

Back at their camp, Yari had a sudden realization. Excusing herself from the conversation P'li, Ming-Hua, and Ghazan were having, she disappeared into the trees to find Zaheer, who was meditating by the river. She went to stand beside him, waiting for him to address her.

"What do you need?" he said finally.

"The night you cornered me in the alley, you mentioned something about my bloodline, and then when we were walking to Yangshou, Ghazan kept asking me what I knew about Amon – who was a waterbender that could bloodbend without a full moon. What gives?"

Yari watched as Zaheer gave a small frown. He opened his eyes and looked up at her.

"Do you remember councilman Tarrlok?"

"What? Yeah, he disappeared alongside Amon after the Equalist movement was disbanded."

"Have you ever noticed you can bloodbend without the power of a full moon?"

She did not like where this was going. "I mean, I guess not but... you're right, I suppose."

"One of the only other people capable of that was Yakone, a crime lord in Republic City thirty years ago. He had two sons: Tarrlok and Noatak, also known as Amon. They both had the same abilities."

"So? I'm sure they didn't have any kids."

"No, but Yakone had a sister, who had a daughter named Lakra, who also had a daughter: you."

"You're lying," Yari said quickly. "My mom never mentioned an uncle or cousins. My grandma was an only child."

"That you know of. Do you know how bad it would be if she implied you were related to Yakone, an infamous bloodbender and gang leader?" Zaheer said calmly. "Did she ever keep a close eye on your bending when you were a child, worried sick about the day that you would show an inkling of power that her uncle did? Or her cousins?"

Memories flashed through Yari's mind: her mother watching closely as she waterbend puddles and snowdrifts. She could vaguely remember the fear in her mom's eyes when Yari had accidentally bloodbent. She couldn't even remember what she had bloodbent, but she remembered the way her mom gripped her wrists and nearly yelled at her to never do what she just did again. It had scared her. It had scared the both of them.

Yari sank to her knees beside Zaheer, staring at her hands. He put a hand on her shoulder.

"You have a gift, Yari; a gift that the world wants you to feel bad for having. They call you a monster, but you're far from it, believe me. We can help you hone your abilities to prove everybody else wrong. Bloodbending isn't inherently evil; you can show them that. You can be the best of all of us."

Yari didn't say anything for a long time, thinking about what he said. Maybe Zaheer, the Red Lotus, was right. Maybe the government was only in place to keep people in line – never to let them be free.

Bloodbending wasn't a curse. It was an art that needed to be nurtured and perfected. She wanted to perfect it, no matter what.

"Okay," she said. "I believe you."


	4. Chapter 4

Ghazan hit the dirt with a grunt, his limbs twitching as he struggled with the invisible binds that held him. Yari stood a few feet away, hands out and fingers bent. With a jerk upwards, Ghazan was on his knees. His teeth were bared and sweat was dripping off his chin, but he appeared to be in no pain. Another jerk and he was on his feet. She made him walk towards her and bow at the waist.

"Alright I give!" he wheezed.

Immediately, Yari dropped her hands and he was set free. He fell to his knees, breathing heavily.

"Are you okay?" she asked him, stooping to his height. "I didn't overdo it, did I?"

"I'm fine," he said. "Nice work, kid. You've come a long way."

"Do you think I can take on the Avatar at Zaofu?"

"Do you think you can?"

"...Yes, I do."

"Then I think so too. You'll do great, kid."

"Actually, I think we'll have you sit this one out," Zaheer said from their makeshift campsite. They were just outside of Zaofu waiting for nightfall when Awei would sneak them inside.

"Why? I'm ready," Yari said, feeling like a child being scolded.

"Because if we reveal our secret weapon too early on, we'll lose the element of surprise when we actually need it. You'll wait here while we go in and when we get back, we'll have the Avatar and we'll need to get moving immediately, so be ready."

Trying not to pout, Yari sighed and sat heavily on a rock. "Fine."

"Don't worry, Yari, your time will come. The rest of you, let's go. Aiwei is meeting us at the rendezvous point at dusk."

Before they left, Ghazan patted Yari's head.

"Be back soon, kid. Don't scowl too hard or your face will get stuck like that."

Ming-Hua and P'li spared her a glance before walking off with Zaheer and Ghazan. Left to her own devices, Yari got up to find a body of water.

***

Yari sat on a lakebed, legs dipped in the water and idly kicking her feet.

She thought of her parents. What would they say if they knew what she was doing? Would they be angry? Disappointed? She hated the thought of being a disappointment – she was their only child; they didn't have some back-up kid to put all of their faith into. She was all they had, and here she was, letting them down again.

She also thought of Bolin and Mako. They were about to meet again for the first time in two years, but on the opposite sides of a fight. Mako was going to be so disappointed. That word again. Yari felt a weight settle in her chest. Maybe she wasn't doing the right thing here.

Avatar Korra was from the Southern Water Tribe like Yari was. They played in the same snowdrifts, knew the same people, celebrated the same festivals. Two sides of the same coin.

Something tickling her foot made Yari jump. A minnow swam figure eights around her feet. She stared at it for a while before it eventually swam deeper into the lake.

The sun had gone down in the time that Yari was zoned out so she got to her feet, put her shoes on, and made her way back to where the rest of the Red Lotus would meet her later.

She spent the next couple of hours doing absolutely nothing. She played with some spirits that flitted past and amused herself by practicing some of her acrobatics, but that was only fun for the first thirty minutes. Eventually she laid on her back, trying to count the stars. She almost hoped the others would fail their mission, because if they came back with the Avatar... everything would suddenly be real and Yari would be a fully-fledged criminal; there would be no coming back from that.

The crunching of gravel startled Yari into a sitting position. She saw Ming-Hua first, then P'li, then Ghazan, and then Zaheer. The Avatar was nowhere in sight.

"Where is she?" Yari asked.

"We were outnumbered," Ming-Hua said. "There was no way we would have been able to get her out of there in one piece."

"We need to find somewhere to camp for the night," Zaheer said. "Aiwei and I had a backup plan in case things go south. I'm meeting him tomorrow at sundown at Xai Bau's Grove."

"Where's that?" Yari said.

"The Spirit World. Xai Bau was the founder of the Red Lotus. He broke off from the White Lotus after it became a faction of servants to corrupt nations. He was... a brilliant man. I hope our revolution will do him justice."

***

The five of them travelled throughout most of the night until they found a small cave on the outskirts of a place called Misty Palms Oasis.

"Get some rest, I'll take first watch." Ghazan said.

As the sun rose, Yari settled on the cool earth and curled in on herself, falling asleep a few minutes later.

***

The next evening, Yari practiced her bloodbending. Ming-Hua and Ghazan stood on either side of her while P'li and Zaheer sat near the mouth of the cave, the latter of which was meditating.

With some concentration, Yari was able to take control of Ghazan. His heartbeat thrummed in her head. Outstretching an arm to Ming-Hua, Yari tried to take control of her as well. She could hear Ming-Hua's pulse beating alongside Ghazan's, but couldn't seem to make her move. Sweat beaded on her temples and she grit her teeth, trying to force her power onto Ming-Hua, but to no avail.

A splitting pain struck Yari's head and she dropped her arms, crying out.

"Are you okay, kid?" Ghazan was at her side in a second, helping her sit down.

Yari rubbed her forehead as her vision swam. "That... really hurt. I don't think I'm ready for that yet. I need more practice."

"Sure. Just don't push yourself, you're no good to us incapacitated."

"The training is going to have to wait," P'li cut in. "The Avatar is at the Misty Palms Inn at the Oasis. You three go after her and I'll stay here with Zaheer."

Ghazan helped Yari to her feet. "It's showtime, kid. You ready?"

Yari swallowed the lump of anxiety forming in her throat. "As I'll ever be," she said with what she hoped was confidence.

"Great," Ghazan said with a grin. "Let's go, Ming-Hua."

Once they arrived at the Inn, Yari climbed to the roof of one of the buildings to keep an eye out for anyone trying to slip away. Ghazan and Ming-Hua rounded the pool in the middle of the courtyard, peering inside windows.

Mako snuck a glance outside – his blood going cold upon seeing two of the Red Lotus members.

"Uh, guys, I don't know how, but Water Arm Lady and Lava Guy found us."

Bolin stirred and squinted outside. "Wait, wait, who's that on the roof? Is – is that...?"

"Yari," Mako gasped. "She's with them."

"That's... not a great sign."

"Asami, take Korra, Naga, and Pabu and get out of here. Bolin and I will hold them off."

"Who's Yari?" Asami asked as Bolin helped her load Korra's body and hoisted it onto Naga. She got on behind her and Pabu jumped onto her shoulder.

"An old friend of ours. She apparently runs with the Red Lotus now," Mako said bitterly.

"Maybe she's just here by coincidence," Bolin said hopefully, only to get a withering glare from his brother.

"Either way, we're still found out," Asami said. "I'm ready to go."

"I'll open the door and you high-tail it out of here. On three. One... two... three!"

Mako threw the door open and Naga darted outside, past the two benders and away from the inn. The waterbender launched three ice shards at them, but they embedded themselves in the building's wall instead. Mako and Bolin burst from Aiwei's room, the former vaporizing the waterbender's attempt at going after Naga and Asami.

Bolin slammed his hands into the ground, sending shockwaves towards the lavabender, only for him to send it right back as molten rocks. While they were distracted, Yari jumped down from the roof and landed in front of Mako. The firebender paused mid-punch. He looked... betrayed.

"Never in a million years would I think you'd associate yourself with a terrorist group," he said acidly.

"And never in a million years did I think you'd threaten to sell me out to Beifong, but here we are," Yari retorted and summoned water from the pool to send a stream of it at him.

Mako ducked out of the way and blasted fire at her. She jumped aside, fashioning herself a water cloak and whipping an appendage at him.

"I thought you were better than this," he said.

"They accept me for who I am, Mako," she spat. "They were the first ones to do so unconditionally. I belong with them."

"What about me and Bolin?" Mako dodged her swings but did not try and fight back. Yari could see the desperation in his eyes and she was suddenly taken back to the days in Republic City where they would roam the streets until midnight, just being teenagers. "We could have turned you into the police right then but we didn't. I said those things because I was angry. Bo and I would never do those things to you, Yari. You're our best friend."

By now Yari had stopped attacking him. She stared at her feet and tried to catch her breath. Mako lowered his hands and took a tentative step towards her, but before he could get any closer, Ming-Hua wrapped a water tentacle around his ankle and threw him into the building behind Yari. Mako crumpled to the ground, unconscious.

"Way to distract him, Yari," she said. "Ghazan took care of his brother," she gestured to Bolin, who was on his back, unmoving but still breathing.

Yari ignored the guilt that was building in her chest and she gave Ming-Hua an uneasy smile.

"You go after the Avatar," the older woman said to Ghazan. "We can handle these two."

Thumping Yari hard on the shoulder, Ghazan was gone with a 'be careful.'

Ming-Hua carried Bolin and Yari carried Mako over her shoulder. The townsfolk hid in their homes, hardly daring to peek out of their windows. The ones that did had their eyes narrowed in contempt. Someone even went as far as to shout insults as they left the town.

They were about halfway back to the hideout when Ghazan appeared, empty-handed. "Earth Kingdom soldiers snatched her up before I could. I guess she's caught some beef with the Queen as well."

Upon returning, Ming-Hua nominated herself to wait outside while Yari and Ghazan went inside the cave to speak to Zaheer and P'li.

Ghazan told them what he told Ming-Hua and Yari earlier. "But we did grab two of the Avatar's friends. Yari seems to know them quite well."

"And how do you feel about this turn of events, Yari?" Zaheer asked her steadily. He was staring at her coldly, searching for any trace of doubt on her face.

"I don't care," Yari almost snapped, but she restrained herself. "An enemy of the Red Lotus is an enemy of mine."

Zaheer smiled. "That's good to hear. Now, P'li and Ghazan, find me a truck. We're taking a trip to Ba Sing Se."


	5. Chapter 5

169 AG, 2 years ago

"Yari, you are not going to believe what's happening!"

Yari smiled at Bolin, who was bounding up to her with a wide grin. "What's happening?"

"Mako and I are starting a pro-bending team!"

"That's awesome, Bo. Who's going to be your waterbender?"

"Actually, we wanted to talk to you about that," Mako came up from behind his brother. "Are you willing to be our waterbender?"

"I mean... I wish I could, but I have my job to do at the circus."

"You're just an assistant for some guy's magic act, with our team you'd at least get some exciting action."

"I'm actually in the midst of creating my own acrobat routine. I don't have time to hit other people off a floating platform. I don't even like pro-bending."

"Yari, you're our only choice. At least just come to one practice?"

"No offence, Mako, but I see no future in pro-bending."

In an instant, Mako's eyes narrowed. "So you're saying we have no future? Big talk coming from someone who assists some wannabe magician by bringing him his props. You work in a circus, for spirit's sake, how long do you think that's going to last?"

Yari bit back a scathing remark. "Mako..."

"No, I don't want to hear it. Come near me or my brother again and I'll tell Beifong about your little secret. Come on, Bo."

Angry tears welled in Yari's eyes as the two boys walked away. Bolin sole a sorrowful glance over his shoulder but Mako immediately turned him back around.

Yari didn't see them again for two years.

 

Present day.

 

Yari sat in the front seat of the truck, trying to ignore Mako's stare burning into the back of her head. She didn't want to turn around in fear of having to face the consequences of her actions. It was childish and selfish, but she couldn't just change her mind now. She was in too deep.

They were stopped at a checkpoint at the outer wall.

"Do you have business in the city?" a guard asked them, looking over a clipboard.

"We have some deliveries to make to the palace from Republic City. Some food," Zaheer said.

The guard flipped the page on his clipboard and hummed. "You guys are a few hours early. We weren't expecting you until this afternoon."

"We got an early start."

"Very efficient. Alright, well, everything looks good on my end. Just pull ahead and the boys can let you in."

Yari couldn't help but stare at the rolling fields as they drove closer to the city. A few workers looked up from their work as they passed. Animals grazed and, in the distance, an ostrich horse cawed. The outer ring was significantly less majestic. It was obviously the poorer district, with rundown buildings and people sharpening weapons in the shadow of alleys. People eyed the truck with distaste as they passed.

Once they got to the innermost ring where the palace was located, Zaheer parked the truck and P'li opened the back door. She hoisted Mako over her shoulder as Ghazan grabbed Bolin and they followed Zaheer up the steps of the palace.

Zaheer knocked on the door and a man with grey hair and light green robes answered it. "Her Majesty isn't seeing anyone at the moment."

"These two here are associated with the Avatar, whom from my understanding, is a wanted woman?"

"Her Majesty doesn't meet with bounty hunters."

"We're not bounty hunters. Additionally, we have some information on some stolen airbenders and their whereabouts."

The man regarded them for a moment before opening the door wider for them to enter. "Wait here while I go and talk to Queen Hou-Ting."

He left them in the foyer and disappeared through a pair of large, golden doors. He returned a minute later, bowing at them. "Her Majesty will see you now."

The servant led them into the throne room. Yari gawked at the pure expanse of it all. Rich golden ornaments lined heavy green drapes; an ornate chandelier hung from the ceiling. A few men in black robes stood on either side of the throne room doors as they closed behind the group.

Ghazan and P'li dumped Mako and Bolin on the floor and the Earth Queen looked them over. "Ah yes, I recognize these two. We'll find you both an acceptable home in the prison among the rest of the dissidents," she said. "And I've been told you have some information about my airbenders. This better not be a ruse to increase your bounty."

"We don't want any bounty. Simply consider these two as a thank you for seeing us," Zaheer said smoothly.

The Queen narrowed her eyes. "How generous. Where are my airbenders?"

"I'd be more than happy to tell you once you hand the Avatar over to me."

"Who told you about that?"

"How I know is unimportant. But if I was able to find out, chances are others will too. And that would put you in a difficult position."

She rose her eyebrows and Zaheer went on, "Once the other nations find out you've got her captured, they will rally for her release, and that could put you in a very sticky international incident. But if you let me take her today, no one will ever need to know that she was here in the first place, and you'll get your airbenders back. Everyone wins."

"And what are your plans with the Avatar, should I accept your request?"

"Her and I have some unfinished business. After this, I can assure you she will never bother you again."

The Queen tapped her chin with her fingernail, mulling it over. Eventually, she sat up straighter and waved for the servant to approach. "I find these terms agreeable. Gun, take this group to the antechamber to wait for the Avatar to arrive. And send these two to the dungeon."

Yari looked back as they were led away and watched Mako and Bolin fall through a trapdoor. Chewing on the inside of her cheek, she hugged her torso and turned back around.

The chamber room was large as well, decorated with green and gold embellishments. A few fancy-looking couches were gathered in the middle with a small, wooden table in between. A hot pot of tea was already sitting on the table with five cups surrounding it.

"And now to play the waiting game," Ming-Hua huffed, going over to one of the couches and sitting on it.

The rest of them followed suit. Yari slumped down on a chair and helped herself to a cup of tea. Her anxiety rose with every passing minute, and she didn't know how much longer she could go on for. At most, she could take on two members of the Red Lotus, but only if she caught them off-guard. But even after that, how would she find Mako and Bolin without arousing suspicion? It was too risky, and she knew it. Zaheer probably knew it too.

A while and three cups of tea later, a man dressed in black robes scurried past the chamber. He was in a rush and Yari caught a glimpse of his face as he passed – he looked almost panicked.

"Looks like he's in a hurry," Zaheer said, rising to his feet. "I'll be right back."

Following the agent out of the room, Zaheer returned a minute later, looking displeased. "The vehicle bringing the Avatar here is in the middle of the desert and she may have escaped."

"What are we going to do now?" Ming-Hua hissed.

"There's no way we can track her in the desert, let alone get there before the Earth Queen's soldiers do," Ghazan said.

"She's probably long gone by now anyway," P'li grumbled.

"It doesn't matter. We're not chasing after her anymore. It's time to make her come to us. I have a plan," Zaheer said. "The Earth Queen's reign is about to come to an abrupt end."

Yari felt her gut drop.

///

The five of them burst into the throne room and approached the Queen.

"And just what do you think you're doing in my throne room unannounced?" the Queen demanded.

"Our apologies, Your Majesty, but we couldn't help but overhear that the Avatar will not be joining us today."

"She is still in my custody. But eavesdropping on a royal conversation will land you in a cell right next to those boys you brought in. If you value your freedom, you'll tell me where my airbenders are right now."

"That wasn't the deal," Zaheer said lowly.

"I will not negotiate anymore with you bounty hunters," the Queen addressed her guards, "Dai Li, seize these hoodlums and throw them in prison until they can show some respect for the crown!"

Two of the Dai Li surrounded them. P'li reacted first, combustion bending the ground in front of the agents to throw them backwards. Summoning water from her pouch, Yari fashioned a water whip and grabbed one of the agents around the throat, tossing him at the wall. He fell to the ground, unmoving. Turning around, Yari saw the Queen duck behind her chair and shake a fist at Gun, who was running out of the room.

Zaheer tapped her on the shoulder and gestured for her to follow. "Now is your time to shine, Yari," he said.

The two of them approached Hou-Ting and the Queen summoned a last shred of regality. "You wouldn't dare attack a Queen," she sneered.

Yari got into a bending stance and took a deep breath to steady her trembling hands.

"I don't really believe in Queens, actually," Zaheer said coolly. "Do it now, Yari."

Yari rose her arms and bent her fingers at the knuckle. The Earth Queen's arms snapped to her sides and she fell to her knees. Her eyes were wide in fear, boring into Yari's.

"Please, child," she choked out. "Not like this."

Gritting her teeth, Yari tried to ignore the Queen's heart beating rapidly in her head. She looked so scared, nothing like the fish Yari had practiced on. She couldn't do it, not to a human, no matter how awful they were. She tried to push through the guilt, shunning the Queen's fear to the corners of her mind.

With a shuddering breath, she dropped her arms and shook her head. "I'm sorry," she whispered.

Clicking his tongue, Zaheer waved his arms around to summon a stream of air. He wrapped it around the Queen's head, pulling a trail from her mouth. Yari realized, in horror, that he was literally taking her breath away. The Queen clutched her chest and braced herself on a railing.

"Freedom is not something you can give or take," Zaheer said evenly. "But to the real world, freedom is just as essential as... air," the Queen's face was beginning to turn purple as her eyes bulged from her head. "Without air, there is no life, there is only darkness."

Hou-Ting's eyes rolled back in her head and her body went limp. Yari couldn't look away as Zaheer dissipated the air vortex and let her body fall to the ground. Her expression remained horrified, a line of drool leaking out of her mouth.

"She's dead," Yari breathed. "I – I can't believe it. She's actually dead," she was beginning to shake. "I can't do this anymore. This is not what I wanted! I wanted to change the world – not commit regicide!"

"I told you what you were getting into the day we met. I gave you multiple chances to get out. If you want to go so bad, go. You're no use to us if you don't want to be here. Go and find your friends and beg for their forgiveness. If they don't want you, no one else will," Zaheer said. "When you find them, tell them the Avatar has three days to turn herself into me or the Northern Air Temple is going up in smoke – along with everyone inside."

Yari mustered up enough confidence to glare at him, but she made her way out of the throne room anyway. Ghazan looked at her in disappointment as she passed.

"I knew we shouldn't have hired a kid," Ming-Hua said. "They're all so weak-willed."

After cornering a servant and demanding they tell her where the dungeon was, Yari was descending multiple sets of stairs when an announcement came over the intercom:

"Attention citizens of Ba Sing Se: you don't know me, but I know of you. I know that you've been oppressed and pushed down by an abusive regime that has left you all struggling for freedom. Moments ago, your Earth Queen was brought down by myself and my group of revolutionaries. But I'm not here to take over the Earth Kingdom. I think you've all had enough with leaders telling you what to do and how to live. It's your turn to take the reins and write your own destiny. You are free now and I am delivering the great city of Ba Sing Se into the hands of the people that made it great in the first place."

Yari got to the dungeon doors just as the announcement finished. A single guard was sitting at a control panel, hands hovering over a series of buttons and switches. Yari fashioned an ice dagger out of the water in her pouch and held it to his eye. "Open the cells," she seethed. "You heard the announcement, you're free now. Get out of here."

He did as she told, flipping all the switches before getting up and running away. Yari entered the cellblock as the prisoners were cautiously stepping out of their cells. Upon meeting no resistance, they started to shove their way out. Yari could see Mako close to the back of the block and weaved past the prisoners."

"Yari," he said in surprise when she approached. "What does Zaheer want now?"

"Nothing. I want to talk to you guys somewhere quiet. Please."

"Why should we go anywhere with you? We can't trust you."

"Mako, please. It's really important that I explain myself to you and Bolin. Zaheer has a message he wants you to take to Korra."

"Yeah, right..." Mako started but Bolin cut him off.

"Bro, I think Yari's telling the truth. Why else would she come let us out personally? Call me crazy but I think we can trust her."

"Fine, you're crazy. But okay, we'll go with you."

Sighing, Yari took Bolin by the wrist, who grabbed Mako by the sleeve, and led them out of the prison wing. The palace was pure pandemonium. Servants and citizens ran down the halls, knocking in doors and looting everything in sight. Yari managed to find a quiet corridor and spoke quickly,

"The reason Zaheer recruited me is because he knew I was related to councilman Tarrlok and Amon and he wanted me to use my bloodbending to kill the Earth Queen and Korra but when the time came to overthrow the Queen, I realized what they were doing wasn't something I could get behind so Zaheer killed her instead. When I told them I didn't want to do it anymore they sent me away, saying to beg you for forgiveness and to tell you to tell Korra if she doesn't turn herself in to him, he'll go to the Northern Air Temple and wipe out all the airbenders there. She's also stranded in the desert somewhere after being captured by the Queen's army."

Mako and Bolin were both quiet.

"Okay, that's a lot of information you've thrown at us but we're going to focus on finding Korra and delivering the message," Mako said first. "We need to find an airship."

"You're related to Amon?" Bolin gasped as they started to walk. "Big, bad, Equalist, Amon?"

"Yeah, him. My mom is their cousin; her mom is Yakone's sister, apparently. I wouldn't have believed Zaheer, it explains why I can bloodbend without a full moon and why my mom was always so against visiting the North Pole."

They descended the palace steps and went up to one of the large airships on a landing pad. Upon getting inside, they came across a group of looters tearing the control panel apart. Mako opened his mouth to say something, but Bolin cut him off, cupping his hands around his mouth.

"The Queen's gold is on the third floor of the palace! It's the second door on the right!"

The looters exchanged excited looks and dropped what they were doing to rush past the three of them and off the ship. Mako and Bolin approached the controls.

"Do you know how to fly this thing?" Mako said to his brother.

"Well, not technically, but it's just a few levers, so how hard could it be?"

At that, Bolin started the engine and pushed one of the levers forward. As a result, Mako and Yari were sent flying backwards, crashing into one another and onto the floor.

"Up! Go up!" Mako shouted, rubbing his shoulder that had collided with Yari's.

"Okay maybe this isn't as easy as I thought it would be," Bolin called, reaching for another lever and pulling it. The ship started to rise. "Oh, never mind."

Yari got to her feet first, holding out her hand for Mako to take. She pulled him up and he staggered over to the controls while she went over to a bench and sat down, trying to settle her uneasy stomach.

As they flew over the lower ring, which was being engulfed in flames, the brothers exchanged looks.

"Mako, our family's down there," Bolin said worriedly. 

Mako nudged his brother aside and took over the controls, sending the ship into a steady descent towards the lower ring.

"Oh, what, you think that because you dated Asami you know how to pilot an airship better than me?" Bolin said, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Uh, yeah," Mako said as-a-matter-of-factually.

Yari's ears perked up at the word date. Mako had a girlfriend? Even more surprising, he was able to get a girlfriend? Not to mention, Asami Sato was one of the prettiest girls Yari had ever seen. She regarded Mako as he pulled a lever above his head. She supposed that he was attractive too, but he was still the high-strung she knew when they were teens.

"Hey Mako," she said suddenly. "What happened to your scarf?"

"I gave it to my grandmother when I met her. It's her and the rest of my family that we're going to save right now," he said. "Okay, Bo, I'll keep the ship here while you go get everyone."

Bolin descended the boarding plank, leaving Yari and Mako alone.

"So, your dad's family lives here?" she said awkwardly.

"Yeah. We happened upon them by chance when Bo and I got stranded in the lower ring after getting stuck on a train while we were chasing some delinquent airbender kid that we picked up in some small town."

"Sounds like quite an adventure. You should catch me up once this is all over."

Mako looked at her carefully. "Sure," he said. "If Beifong doesn't throw you in prison, that is."

"Oh, right," Yari said sadly, staring down at her lap. "I guess so."

Bolin returned a few minutes later with a couple dozen people in tow and they situated themselves around the ship. The oldest of the bunch, a woman with white hair and Mako's scarf across her shoulders was clutching a painting of the Earth Queen to her chest and Yari felt a pang of guilt once again. She got up to avoid any confrontation and approached the brothers and a boy with a green headband around his forehead.

"Did something happen to the Avatar?" 

"I'm afraid so. She was captured by the Earth Queen's army, but it went down somewhere in the desert," Mako said, pointing out the desert on a map that was laid out on a table. "She was coming from a military base near the Misty Palms Oasis and heading to Ba Sing Se. We just need to retrace the path and we should be able to find the wreckage."

Mako, Bolin, and Yari stood at the controls while they sailed over the desert. Mako and Bolin's family talked quietly amongst themselves, some keeping an eye out for any trace of a wrecked airship. 

One of their cousins, Tu, spotted it first. "Guys, it's the ship!" he called.

Yari peered through the window Tu was pointing out of. Sure enough, the remains of a crashed Ba Sing Se airship was half-buried in the sand, but there were pieces missing. Squinting, she noticed some tracks leading away from the wreckage.

"There's tracks," she said. "Maybe they built something that would get them to safety."

"Let's follow them," Bolin said to his brother and they changed the ship's directory to follow the tracks, back in the direction of the Misty Palms Oasis.


	6. Chapter 6

As they approached the Misty Palms Oasis, Yari was surprised to see a large, red, dragon sleeping at the gates. Her heart hammered in her chest; there was only one person in the world who had a dragon, and she was worried that there would be other world leaders there too.

The airship suddenly lurched and she fell against the control panel, beside Bolin, who was upside down, his legs flailing in the air. Mako was on the panel too, hair a mess.

“I told you,” Bolin said. “Landing is hard.”

Everyone re-situated themselves and descended the boarding plank, walking in a group to the middle of the village. A few of Mako and Bolin’s cousins watched the spirits flying about in awe. Bolin jumped onto the ledge of the fountain that was in the heart of the village and cupped his hands around his mouth to get everyone’s attention,

“Okay everyone, we think Korra found her way back here,” as he spoke, a red fire ferret skittered up to him and climbed up to his shoulders, chattering excitedly. “So we’re going to split off into teams and look through the town. Yes, Pabu, we’ll need your help too, now just give me a second and I’ll…” he stopped himself with a gasp and grabbed Pabu, hugging him to his chest and squealing, “Pabu! I’m so glad to see you!”

As Bolin kissed his ferret, a blur of white bolted towards them and tackled Mako to the ground, licking his face.

“It’s good to see you too, Naga!” he said from beneath the polar bear dog, trying to push her off, but to no avail. “Stop, stop, you’re licking my mouth!”

“Asami! Korra!” Bolin cried as two girls came running out of a nearby building.

Both Mako and his brother rushed up to the girls and hugged them tightly.

“Oh good, you two aren’t dead,” another voice chimed in from behind them. Lin Beifong, Chief Tonraq, and Lord Zuko followed Asami and Korra outside.

Yari shifted nervously. Someone was going to recognize her; her face was probably plastered all over the country alongside the rest of the Red Lotus. Chief Beifong noticed her first.

“What are you doing here?” she asked her. “I thought the circus didn’t travel anymore.”

“She’s with us,” Bolin said.

“Why?”

All eyes were on her and Yari wanted to swallow her face.

“Wait, you were the one that attacked us the other night, with that lavabender and the lady with no arms!” Asami gasped. “You’re a member of the Red Lotus!”

Beifong, Tonraq, and Lord Zuko got into a battle position, but Yari rose her hands.

“I’m not with them anymore, I swear!” she said. “I was with them for a while, yes, but I left them after they took down the Queen.”

“She’s telling the truth,” Mako cut in. “She got Bolin and I out of prison and told us to deliver a message to Korra from Zaheer: he’s heading to the Northern Air Temple right now. He said he’s going to wipe out the entire Air Nation if Korra doesn’t turn herself over to him.” 

“Kid, you and I are going to go have a talk,” Beifong said, grabbing Yari by the collar and dragging her away from the group. She took her into the building Korra and Asami had come out of a minute before. 

They entered a small restaurant that was empty except for a couple of employees. Beifong led her to a secluded area of the establishment and sat Yari down. She used her metalbending to fasten Yari’s wrists to the table. 

“How do you know Zaheer?” Beifong demanded.

“He recruited me the day before he infiltrated Air Temple Island. He said he knew of my lineage and my… gift. He said that he could make the world see that what I could do wasn’t a bad thing, and that it was something to be respected, not feared. And I – I believed him. And I went with him.”

“And what is your lineage?” Beifong frowned.

“My mom… she’s a cousin of councilman Tarrlok. She’s Yakone’s niece.”

“And your gift?”

“I’m a bloodbender,” Yari said quietly.

Beifong’s frown deepened. “How did Zaheer find out about that?”

“Chief Unalaq told him. I wouldn’t be surprised if he was a Red Lotus member, too. Zaheer wanted me to use my bloodbending to kill Korra and the Earth Queen.”

“Did you kill the Earth Queen?”

“No! I couldn’t do it, I didn’t want to do it. I just wanted to change the world, but I didn’t want it to be through violence.”

“What made you change your mind?”  
“Mako did. When I came here with Ghazan and Ming-Hua to capture Korra, he talked some sense into me.”

“If Mako changed your mind so early on, why did you wait until Ba Sing Se to act on it?”

“I didn’t want to believe he was right. I thought that if I went through with what Zaheer was asking of me, I’d prove to myself that what I was doing was okay, but I couldn’t.”

Beifong crossed her arms over her chest and stared down at Yari, thinking.

“Associating with a terrorist group is a serious offence; you could be looking at years in prison. But… if you prove yourself in this showdown that we’re no doubt about to have, I may be able to forgive that and you’ll get off on a misdemeanor, at the very least. Do you truly regret running with the Red Lotus?”

“I do.”

“Let me discuss it with the others. I’ll be back to tell you what they decide.”

Chief Beifong left Yari to her own devices, still fastened to the table, her leg bouncing ceaselessly.

After what felt like eternity, Beifong re-entered the restaurant and released the cuffs around Yari’s wrists.

“I spoke with Korra and Tonraq and they’ve agreed to let you help out. But I will tell you this: put one toe out of line, and I’ll make sure you never see the outside of a prison cell ever again. Do you understand me?”

“Yes ma’am. Thank you.”

“Don’t thank me. Mako and Bolin vouched for you. I almost forgot how much time you three spent together, getting into trouble for petty crimes. Now come on, we’re heading to Zaofu.”

Yari followed Beifong back out to the street and was greeted by Bolin.

“Are you coming with us?” he asked. 

“Yeah, Beifong said you and Mako vouched for me. Thanks for that, I don’t want to know what would have happened if you guys weren’t here.”

“You’re our friend, Yari, even if we’ve been apart for a few years.”

Yari smiled at that and followed everyone back onto the airship. Avatar Korra was waiting for her at the top of the boarding plank.

“Yari, right?” Korra said to her. “I’m Korra.”

“I – I know. I’m sorry for everything that’s happened. I never thought it would lead to this,” Yari said.

“It’s alright, none of us thought this would happen. You’re here now, that’s all that matters; we’re going to need all the help we can get to go up against Zaheer. Did he tell you anything else other than what he’s planning?”

“No, nothing. I think he kept stuff from me deliberately so I wouldn’t get scared early on and back out.”

“I see. Well, we’re a couple of hours from Zaofu so make yourself comfortable.”

“What’s in Zaofu?”

“The Metal Clan. Beifong’s sister is the leader there. We need to go there to radio the Air Temple that Zaheer is on his way.”

Yari remembered Zaofu being the place that Zaheer and the rest of the Red Lotus went to try and capture Korra a few days ago. 

Yari went and sat down, catching the eye of a girl with long dark hair. Asami Sato. She was glaring at Yari, arms crossed tightly over her chest. A beat passed and Asami crossed the ship, going right up to Yari and getting close to her face.

“You might have everyone else here buying your transformation, but I have experience with people like you – people who thought their cause was justified but suddenly had a change of heart once they were caught,” Asami said acidly. “Let me make this clear to you right now: if you make one step backward, one slip up, give me one reason to believe you might hurt Korra, and I’ll make sure you never have to worry about your mission ever again – because I’ll make it end right then and there – permanently.”

She didn’t give Yari a chance to reply before she was walking away, pretending like nothing ever happened.

Yari swallowed the lump in her throat and looked over at Mako, who was watching her with his eyebrows knitted together. She gave a weak smile and looked away, trying to steady her shaking hands.

**Author's Note:**

> hello friends! we are back at it again with the moody firebenders.  
> it might be the little anarchist in me but i love Zaheer and his squad, and i can't say i disagree with his philosophy (as much as i love Korra) and i'm pumped to explore the Red Lotus as characters and real people. i'm very excited to see where this story takes us and i hope you enjoy it in the meantime!! <3


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